Requiem of the West

A Game of Tea and Shadows

Visit to Maruboru

Or, This Isn't Me Pretending It's Call of Cthulhu

12

MAR/14

Pre-tavern Recon:
Corpses found missing eyes. Don’t know what kind of corpses they are.
Group in questionis called Toitsusa Retainu
Peasants don’t seem to like this group, apparently fairly heretical and subversive stuff
Peasants told not to talk to Samurai about it
The group is able to keep the Yakuza and Triads out by supporting the working glass.

Jyuurouta (dressed as a ronin) is approached by a man named Takuchi, who says he looked like an individual down on his luck. He offers him space and food at a tavern called Maruboru.

After discussion with the rest of the party, the group decides to go to Maruboru in shifts. Shiomai and Sakura go first, followed by Jyuurouta and Haji. Arita arrives last.
*
At the Tavern*
The tavern is large, close to the forbidden district. There is maybe a space for a garden out back. It could support a basement (and it is worth it to note that the city is built on five other cities).

We are greeted by a woman in a plain gray kimono, and then by the patron of the establishment. Sakura notes that he is pleasant, but Shiomai and others note that there is a strain in his voice, tension in his shoulders, and is missing his index and middle finger. They have been cut off, recently.

Shiomai notes and shares with Sakura that there is a black moth, not from this area, that flies in and flings itself at a candle flame, killing itself.

Jyuurouta and Haji are followed to the tavern. By whom, I have no idea.

Shiomai notes that there is a basement in the establishment.

Everything is fine until one patron gets drunk—startlingly quickly. He is taken rather quickly upstairs, by the nervous patron. The man is slightly richer than one would expect to be at such an establishment.

Shiomai and Sakura are paranoid as hell, so they decide to try and get a room upstairs AKA spy on the man. Shiomai hears snoring from a room and a snippet of conversation:
“Do we know?”
“Too often?”
The voices stop as soon as they hear Shiomai approaching.
She also hears footsteps above her. On the roof. Because that isn’t suspicious at all.

Against Sakura’s paranoid better judgement, they decide to get a room and spend the night.

Shiomai and Arita hear a door at the end of the hall slide closed and lock.

There’s a girl guarding the door downstairs. This annoys Sakura. They can’t go downstairs untill business is concluded (but I guess being locked upstairs is better than being locked outside.) This really bothers Sakura.

Downstairs, the rest of the patrons stream out. A ragtag group of peasants come in, wearing the grim disposition of people prepared for violence. Tend to be in 30’s, but broad range of age. No visible weapons, but seem worn out. Group of about 30 individuals. Takuchi introduces Jyuurouta and Haji as other named individuals. Talk of inducting them, discuss wanting to celebrate another day gone by.

Evening passes—above, we hear the sound of partying going on below. Down there, there is, indeed, partying. Jyuurouta senses in that they are not unwelcome, but they don’t trust him or Haji yet. People are starting to slip off. The more hardened seem to slip off back into the kitchen, down into where the basement might be (about 10, of a total 40 individuals).

Jyuurouta is gestured to come aside. Inkeeper offers that he might feel a little more disgruntled than he initially let on. Inkeeper wants a reason to trust Jyuurouta, so that he could introduce him to those who could help. Jyuurouta says “hey I’m good at doing bad stuff.” this is apparently enough for an inkeeper (who can be swindled by apparently any scruffy looking nerf herder), who offers to take him downstairs. Haji looks mopey enough that the inkeeper will take him downstairs too. Ooh. Scandal.

There is a sliding door with robes and masks. Jyuurouta and Haji put on masks and robes. I lose my mind and scream CALL OF CTHULHU I HAVEDONETHISTHINGBEFOREANDTHEONLYWAY WE ALLGOTOUTWAS MY ME TANKINGTHROUGH A FROGDEMON.

Now that I’ve gotten that out of my system, there are barrels of sake and a table. Everyone sits around it.

Sakura was a smartass, finally succeeded a roll, and realized we no longer hear snoring from the room where the man was. I instantly lose my mind.

There are the basic militant plannings of a revolution. The members of the group want to find a reason for Haji and Jyuurouta to be trusted. Going to be taken to the place of initiation. I continue to lose my mind over this because I’m not having flashbacks. Not at all.

Of Note: the Lanterns that line the wall each have a clan crest on them. One of three. Hironobu, Kageyama, and Shino.

So now they’re being taken to some initiation room. Take them downstairs to the tunnels. Are led somewhere in the inner city. Come out into a larger chamber, somewhere in the basement of another building.

They smell something acrid, like tanning solutions. Also recognized as being in the forbidden district, where the untouchables live. Fantastic.

As I continue to rage mightily about calling it, the drunk man from before is bound to an x-shape cross. He looks otherwise unharmed.

They claim that the man is a spy, and that he should be killed for his crimes. And that Jyuurouta and Haji are the ones to do it.

Down below there is a fresco with a kageyama symbol featured prominently in it.

Then a man appears behind jyuurouta, wearing an agent’s garb, a white mask, with golden eyes. This sends one of us into squeals. Jyuurouta’s blades are heavy and humming softly. The figure looks smaller and younger. As he glares, there is a slight distortion around him. Oh fun. Oh delight.

Upstairs, Shiomai distracts the maid so Sakura can get into the room where the drunk man was. Sakura doesn’t find a secret passage, but Arita does, and eventually Sakura, Shiomai, and Arita go down the hole.

We see a wall that seems to be lit from behind. Arita hears the conversation between Jyuurouta, Haji, and the cultists. He relays this to Sakura and Shiomai. Shiomai, Sakura, and Arita, manage to sneak into the room. Shiomai notices there is someone in the shadows, in the tight black clothing of an agent, with a white mask and gold eyes. He motions for Shiomai to be quiet, but she just kinds of snarks at him.

We find a cultist (I think?) and follow him down a hallway. After losing Arita, we come to a screen, slide it open just enough to see through, and see the scene with Jyuurouta and Haji. Arita, who got lost in the tunnels, joins us.

There are 11 other people in the room. We don’t know how well armed they are.

Jyuurouta gives Haji the “WHAT” face. Haji attempts to talk his way out of it. We all end up seeing the figure that Jyuurouta is talking to, and we note some distortion in the air. We’re frozen in time. The moth flutters off of Jyuurouta’s shoulder

We all, have collectively, lost our minds at this.

Jyuurouta and Seiji have a heartwarming reunion. I mean. Jyuurouta presents him with the oragami he gave him. But Seiji insists he is just there to have jyuurouta realize his full potential/observe.

Time snaps back into place. Those of us in the doorway realize the door is open, and the sword is out, and a cultist is out and attacking another.